Man charged with driving under the influence of etomidate, killing motorcyclist

Man charged with driving under the influence of etomidate, killing motorcyclist Puah Zhe Cong allegedly stopped his car on the expressway, obstructing traffic and causing a multi-vehicle collision before fleeing the scene. SINGAPORE: A man was charged in court on Wednesday (Jun 10) over his erratic driving on an expressway that caused a collision, killing a motorcyclist and grievously injuring a pillion rider. Puah Zhe Cong, a 34-year-old Singaporean, was given seven charges in relation to the incident in the wee hours of Jun 5, 2025 along the Central Expressway towards the Seletar Expressway. The charges include driving under the influence of etomidate, dangerous driving causing death, grievous hurt and hurt, failing to stop after an accident and leaving the accident scene with the vehicle. According to a police statement, Puah had been driving "erratically" at about 1.15am that day, causing other vehicles to take evasive action to avoid him. Puah then allegedly stopped his car in the middle of the expressway, obstructing traffic. A motorcyclist collided with the stationary vehicle and both the rider and his pillion fell into the path of oncoming traffic. As a result, the 20-year-old motorcyclist died from serious injuries while his 28-year-old male pillion rider suffered fractures to his spine and ankle, along with liver lacerations and other injuries. Puah allegedly fled the scene in his car immediately after the accident. The police arrested Puah within 13 hours of the police report and etomidate, a Class C drug under the Misuse of Drugs Act, was detected in his blood. His driving licence was suspended immediately. If convicted of driving under the influence of a drug as a repeat offender, he could be jailed for up to two years, fined between S$5,000 and S$20,000 and banned from driving for at least five years. For dangerous driving causing death, he could be jailed for between two and eight years. As a "serious repeat offender", he could be jailed between two and four years and banned from driving for at least 15 years. Puah has other existing charges pending. These include stealing an Audi A3 owned by Shariot Car Sharing on two occasions, using a woman's Shariot login credentials to rent a car, driving without insurance and receiving US$1.2 million and remitting it to bank accounts on the instructions of a criminal. A lawyer mentioning his case on behalf of Puah's lawyer, Mr Andy Yeo, asked for the case to be adjourned for a pre-trial conference, which was fixed for Jun 26.